♪ you're listening to billy joel's "my life." love this song. it is from his album "52nd street," first commercial cd released. this cd turns 30 years old today, when the first cd player hit the market in 1982, sold for $730. today, that would be more than $1700. love the cd player. love the albums too. i still have albums. "cnn newsroom" continues now with brooke baldwin. >> i was just record shopping yesterday, thank you very much. good to see all of you. i'm brooke baldwin. off the top, we're expecting the results from the most recent search for jimmy hoffa. we are told investigators have tested the soil that was taken from the home in detroit. a tip led police there just last week in this latest chapter here, really involving one of america's greatest mysteries.

as soon as we get the results, we'll bring them to you live here on cnn. first, let's talk about what you're talking about, that being the presidential debate. we're going to do that here, but i do want to begin with talking taxes. yes. taxes. did you hear paul ryan, if i heard this correctly, if i heard paul ryan correctly, he said he cannot explain mitt romney's tax policy, at least not the whole thing because, well, it would take too long. we'll play some of that sound for you in a moment. romney and ryan, they are clear about this. that they would cut everyone's tax rate 20%. cut and dry, 20% rate cut. but, to protect the government's revenue stream, they would have to kill certain deductions and certain loopholes, but they won't be specific, won't say which ones those would be. here is congressman ryan, he starts by trumpeting the tax rate cut. >> lowering tax rates by broadening the tax base works. and you can -- >> but i have to --

>> no. >> but you haven't given me the math. i don't have the -- it would take me too long to go through all the math. >> too long to go through the math, he says. but ryan did go on to hint, didn't promise, but he hinted that a romney administration would look at tax loopholes enjoyed by the wealthy. here's that. >> when you close a tax write-off or tax shelter for a higher income person, more of their income is subject to taxation so you can lower tax rates. that's where we begin. where we go is by denying those deductions and loopholes to higher income people, which allows us to lower tax rates for everybody across the board and still afford important preferences for the middle class taxpayers. >> there you have paul ryan on taxes. we expect some of the comments to pop up come wednesday night during the debate in denver, the very first presidential debate here of this election season. and i want to go to chief white house correspondent jessica yellin in washington with me. we now know, jesse, the president is in nevada. romney also headed westward, so there is obviously a lot going

into these debate preparations and i have to imagine that's not unusual whatsoever. >> no, it is not unusual. it is standard for the candidates to go into debate camp. that is especially true for a sitting president for whom it is tough to carve out time when he's in the white house. so leaving town is really the only way for a sitting president to do it. >> and, of course, we know mitt romney was, you know, working and what was it vermont or new hampshire during the dnc. he's been preparing as well. we have been talking over and over about the so-called expectations game where the romney folks try to, you know, make romney out to be the king kong of all debaters and when the romney folks talk, obama is suddenly superman. candy crowley has an interesting take on all of this. let's watch this together. >> reporter: apparently romney supporter and republican governor chris christie didn't get the memo. >> wednesday night is the restart of this campaign and i think you'll see the numbers start to move right back into the other direction.

>> reporter: note to governor christie, no, no, no, no. sop for predebate chatter is to lower expectations for your guy by raising expectations for the other guy. like this. >> president obama is a very -- he's a very gifted speaker. the man's been on the national stage for many years. he's an experienced debater. >> reporter: because this is a bipartisanly accepted strategy like this. >> we expect it all along that governor romney will have a good night, he's prepared more than any candidate in history and he's shown himself to be a very, very good debater through the years. >> reporter: since you're supporting romney, the candidate who is running behind, you are supporting him, right? then you also need to lower the stakes for wednesday's first of these presidential debates, like this. >> frankly, i can't remember the last time there was one of these comments that grabbed everybody's attention because frankly the candidates are too well prepared. they're well scripted. >> reporter: and like this. >> i don't think one event is going to make or break this campaign. >> reporter: but definitely

governor christie, definitely not like this. >> i'll tell you, bob, thursday morning, you're going to be scratching your heads and saying, wow, we have a barn burner for the next 33 days. >> reporter: the thing is, when you say that, the president's senior adviser says stuff like this. >> they expect to come out of this with a race fundamentally changed. what does that mean? if it is going to fundamentally change, that means in seven or ten days from now you'll see ohio tied, states like iowa tied. that's what matters here. >> reporter: like they say, governor christie, there is no heavier burden than great expectations. candy crowley, cnn, washington. >> jessica yellin, i love candy, didn't get the memo. this is all part of the noise surrounding this lowering expectations game. i want to show everyone this one poll. here is your expectation. this is from abc news/washington post, found 55% of those questioned believe obama will win the debate. 31% said romney will win. that's obviously huge margin there. are you surprised by that, that big differential?

>> no. i mean, romney had a tough run lately, in part, driven by the gaffe. the president is known as a good speaker. so it is not entirely surprising. it means there is a steeper challenge for the president to come out as the perceived, quote, winner. but the pressure isn't on the president to change the dynamic in this race on wednesday night. that pressure is facing mitt romney right now. he has to deliver not only some knockout blows, but also take none of his own while also communicating warmth, leadership, content, and likability to the viewers at home to really turn this race around in just a debate on wednesday night. it is a huge lift. >> it is a huge lift, but also not like mitt romney, some wall flawer, far from it. we remember the primary debates, we pulled some sound. this is when he's mixing it up with rick perry during primary season. >> i'm speaking. i'm speaking. i'm speaking. i'm speaking. you get 30 seconds. this is the way the rules work

here is i get 60 seconds and you get -- and you get 30 seconds to respond, right? >> and they want -- >> anderson, you -- would you please wait? are you just going to keep talking? are you going to let me finish with what i have to say? >> hello, remember that? i remember watching that. that was our cnn debate, back and forth, a taste of mitt romney, i assume the president is -- he's preparing for that kind of exchange. >> sure, romney is great on the -- behind the podium. the president no doubt has -- is preparing for that. his advisers have watched all that video. romney and -- romney will no doubt know that the president has also shown some irritability in the past when he's been challenged. and he cannot afford to seem impatient or thin skinned when he's questioned. so that will be something he'll have to prepare for. so that's something that they'll no doubt be working on in debate camp. the same for romney. he can't brace or seem thin skinned when the president challenges him, more of a

challenge no doubt when you're the sitting president to get used to somebody questioning you, getting right up in your face and taking issue with your policies and truthfulness. >> a lot of game tape to watch by wednesday. i cannot wait for this debate. jessica yellin, thank you very much. just to all of you, a reminder, you'll hear me say this for the next couple of days. wednesday night, the president versus his challenger face to face, of course special coverage begins 7:00 eastern, right here on cnn. and cnn.com. and a lot more for you on this monday, watch this. there is a pretty good chance the next president will make at least one supreme court pick. and our sources are telling us who has the best shot. i'm brooke baldwin. the news is now. he helped terrorize a nation. and now from behind bars one of the d.c. snipers reveals the chilling image he can't erase from his mind. plus, california, the first state to ban the so-called cure for being gay.

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well, the supreme court back in session today and will consider some of the most controversial issues of our time. you have affirmative action, same sex marriage, abortion rights. one item, the highest court will not be considering, those thorough body pat-downs and the use of full body scanners at the u.s. airports. michigan blogger complained that the tsa screening techniques violate the fourth amendment, which protects us from illegal searches. but the supreme court gave the blogger's complaint a pass. the nine justices who sit on the u.s. supreme court have the final say on what is legal in this country. items like i just mentioned from affirmative action, abortion, here is something you may not have considered. over the next four years, justices antonin scalia, anthony kennedy, ruth bader ginsburg, will pass their 80th birthdays. court watchers expect one or

more of them to retire during the course of the next presidency. which justices leave and whether the replacement is nominated by romney or obama could tip the balance of the court. i think back to the contentious health care decision, that 5-4 outcome, this may not be exciting stuff, but it is exciting if you're following it like we are. it is so, so important. wasn't to bri i want to bring in joe johns. president obama already put not just one but two justices on the current court. you know, reading into the supreme court tea leaves if you will, does that give us a pretty good idea as to who might be on the short list, if and when he's re-elected, and a vacancy perhaps pops open. >> well, i think so. you never know in these things, brooke, but if president obama were re-elected and got the opportunity to select a replacement, one of the names, interesting enough, that we have been hearing a lot is kamala harris, the california attorney general, also mentioned as a

possible nominee for the united states attorney general if eric holder were to step down. diana wood, now, this is a name we have heard before. a lot of people thought she was a lock for the last supreme court nomination. she was from chicago. so her name, likely to come up again if the president gets the opportunity. and there is one other one too that you haven't heard too much about, name is jacqueline nguyn. so, you know, a lot of possibilities there, but, i guess barack obama has to get re-elected first. >> and that is the big if, right? let's flip this script and say if romney is elected and he hasn't publicly stated, you know, who he would nominate if he is president but there san unofficial list. who is on that list? >> you would expect a reliable conservative, romney choices include judge brett cavanagh, known well in d.c. he's a former top official in

the george w. bush administration. sitting on the federal appeals court in d.c. right now, he actually clerked for justice anthony kennedy back in the day. so perhaps that's a leg up. judge diane sykes is a popular conservative on the federal appeals court in milwaukee. so she is a choice too, especially, say, if justice ruth bader ginsburg, one of the liberals were to retire. sykes would probably be a leading candidate. and also have to mention paul clement. this is a really well known lawyer who actually served as the united states solicitor general. and argues a lot of big cases before the court including the health care case. i heard him speak here in washington, d.c. not too long ago. he's a very sharp guy. so a lot of choices there for mitt romney if he gets the job. and assuming somebody steps down, you know, they don't have to step down. >> i know. if you have three potential

octogenarians, you have to think who might fit the bill. the surviving d.c. sniper is speaking out in this rare interview from behind bars, maximum security prison in virginia. you'll hear some of the absolutely chilling details about what lee boyd malveaux is revealing about the rampage that terrorized the nation's capital ten years ago. up isn't easy, and we ought to know. we're in the business of up. everyday delta flies a quarter of million people while investing billions improving everything from booking to baggage claim. we're raising the bar on flying and tomorrow we will up it yet again. if we want to improve our schools... ...what should we invest in? maybe new buildings? what about updated equipment? they can help,

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you see the quote here, i was a monster. the words of the only surviving d.c. area sniper from behind bars at this maximum security prison, lee boyd malvo spoke with the washington post about what he has learned since he and john allen muhammad went on a murder spree, one of the most notorious killing sprees this nation has ever seen in washington, d.c. and its suburbs. it happened ten years ago this month. and the two men killed ten people, hurt three more, including a 13-year-old, and created widespread fear that if you walked out your door that day, you could die. >> everybody is scared. we're scared to go to the score. we're scared to pump gas. >> muhammad was put to death three years ago. malvo who is now 27, will spend the rest of his life in prison and from behind bars, malvo apologized.

>> i am sorry. i am sorry. there is no way to express -- there is no way to express that. i mean, what am i going to tell them? i'm sorry i murdered your only child. i'm sorry i killed your husband. i'm sorry i murdered your wife. what do i tell the child who was waiting for his father to come home? his dad never showed up. i mean, there is nothing -- >> i was in virginia at the time. i'm sure if you were, d.c., you remember the fear, it was palpable. malvo told this writer at the washington post, one of his most vivid memories he has of that time, at that killing spree, he looked into the eyes of this man, ted franklin, the husband of a woman he helped shoot down.

>> it is the worst sort of pain i've ever seen in my life. his eyes. it is the worst -- words, i can 'no not fully convey that emotion. and what i felt like, you feel like the worst piece of scum on the planet. >> it is pretty compelling interview and article in the washington post. you can hear much more about this interview, this writer from the post sitting across the plexiglass from malvo, just this past month. you can watch that in the "situation room" 4:00 eastern time. and to politics. we return. everyone is talking about the presidential race, but right now the control of congress also very much so at stake. we are launching a special series this week and today we'll tell you which two races could mean the difference in the senate. oh no, not a migraine now.

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i know everyone has their eye on the white house, and the race, of course. and wednesday's debate in denver. but question not forget about what is happening in congress, the party that controls the house and/or the senate will make a huge difference in what the next president or cannot accomplish. let's talk senate, and the balance of power. right now you see the number, 47. right now, republicans hold 47 senate seats. but they have their eye, of course, on, you know, retaking the majority and retaking control of capitol hill and to do that, they would need to win four seats, just four currently held by democrats. and then hold on, of course, presumetion is hold on to all of the seats they already control. we have our eye on two different races today, posing problems for both parties. one is in missouri, where, you know, things have gotten a lot more difficult than expected for republicans. we have talked about this.

we'll go there in a moment. the other being maine where an independent is ahead in the polls. so senior congressional correspondent dana bash, she's joining me now and, dana, let's talk missouri here. because what we have told the todd akin, claire mccaskill story in the past, but given what he said, not necessarily an easy win for republicans now. >> that's right. it has been such a roller coaster for republicans, brooke. they went into this race months ago thinking that democrat claire mccaskill was so vulnerable that they were sure to win this seat. it was complicated by todd akin as you said, we talked about it a lot in this program. but the gist of what he said, which was so controversial, a woman's body has the ability to shut down pregnancy from rape. it can refuse to step aside, of course, and republicans who hammered him, begged him to get out of the race, are now in an uncomfortable position of having to eat crow. saying, well, he's better than the democrat. roy blunt, the current sitting

senator from missouri. >> i think that anybody else would have been a candidate that clearly would have won and todd very well may win. he's on a ticket, at a time when people are looking at a senate that is not doing its work and the only way to change the senate is to change the majority. >> so that is a very different kind of take that we heard from not just roy blunt, but from lots of other republicans. and national republicans are not giving him any money yet, but we'll see what happens. >> so that's the yet, because, you know, we have been watching what it was one deadline past and another deadline, congressman akin staying in, we saw newt gingrich helping to campaign with him. might we see any outside money headed into the todd akin campaign? >> well, from the perspective of the national republican party, they're hedging their bets. they'll wait and see if it is close. sources i've talked to said they don't think it will be, but they're going to not close the door. but with regard to outside

groups, one of the biggest ones, crossroads, karl rove's group, they insist they will not spend money there but there are other outside groups. one was backed by senator jim demint. they did a poll of their supporters online, and they all said that they believe that they should back todd akin and i think we have a shot of the website. so far they have raised $138,000 in a week online. so, you know, that's not going to win the race for todd akin, but it is more money than he had before and we'll see how much money they raise in the next month. >> that is missouri. let's talk maine. you and i have talked about senator olympia snowe, on this show, i want to say last week. she was talking about how -- just the frustration, you know her story, frustration between the bickering back and forth and so after, what, six -- 18 years in the senate, she's leaving. what does it look like for republicans to grab that seat? >> it is a really tough one for both parties because this is a

three-way race. the moderate republican, as you mentioned, she's retiring. and when you look at state of play, republicans really need to hold on to this seat because if they lose it, they'll have to pick up another democratic seat elsewhere to win back control of the senate. race has put democrats in a pickle too, brooke, because the democrat on the ballot, cynthia dill, she's way behind and not considered likely to win at all. it is the independent popular former governor angus king that democrats have their hopes on because they think they don't know it for sure, but think they'll caucus with democrats and give them that sort of seat on the ledger. it is critical, a critical race, but because it is so confused, and it is such a tough one for democrats, they're just now for first time a month out spending real money there, nearly half a million dollars is going to go into ads that are expected to go up tomorrow. we don't have content yet, but all bets are on the fact they'll stay neutral when it comes to angus king and the democrats and go after the republican there who is doing pretty well and his name is charlie sawyers.

it is a difficult party in maine. >> dana bash, thank you. we'll be talking all week. it is so important, not just to focus on the presidential race, but who controls congress. >> this is the real nail biter. >> it is. we'll talk tomorrow. thanks so much. coming up here, california becomes the first state to ban a therapy aimed at quote/unquote curing being gay. some claim the therapy works. others say there is absolutely no scientific proof that there the therapy is at all beneficial. i'll speak live with the therapist about his first experience with the program and why he believes it should not be banned in his state of california. don't miss this. jack, you're a little boring.

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critics call it the cure, quote/unquote, that only makes you worse. reparative therapy is the official name for treatment that aims to turn someone who is gay straight. now it has been banned in california. this is the first state in the nation that has done this for

kids and for teenagers. governor jerry brown signed this ban in into law over this past weekend and tweeted about it. let me read one of his tweets. this bill bans nonscientific, quote, therapies that have driven young people to depression and suicide. joining me is david pickup, a reparative therapist and spokesman for the national association of research and therapy of homosexuality, he is getting miked up. also with me right now is cnn's senior medical correspondent elizabeth cohen. so, elizabeth, as we await david, just begin with what we know about this so-called reparative therapy. >> the american psychological association had a task force that took a long look at this. and here's what they came up with. they said there is no good studies showing it works or doesn't work. so no good studies showing this works. they say some people have been harmed by it, depression, other problems. and this is a quote, there is insufficient evidence to support the use of psychological interventions to change sexual

orientation. >> okay. >> plainly spoken. >> hold that thought. we have david. david, you with me? >> yes, i'm here, thank you. >> david, nice to have you on. welcome. of course we brought you on because i want to get your reaction to this legislation, this now law in effect in california. but first just explain to me as a reparative therapist, give me an example, parents come to you in the case of a minor and what do they say, what do they ask for? >> the parent asks for, first of all, what fits for the child. the parent says that the child is distressed usually because he's had something happen to him in his life that has caused his homosexual feelings and the child who is the client most importantly confirms that. and says he needs help because he's distressed over homosexual feelings. >> so that's an example of what a potential client, a potential patient comes to you and seeks help. but this is -- this is personal for you, david, because not just -- you're not just a therapist, you underwent this treatment and from what i

understand this is still a journey. can you explain why you sought this therapy? >> yes. reparative therapy, i'm talking about authentic reparative therapy, the other side of this issue will label this quackery and put this all in a ring of things that just aren't true, but i'm talking about authentic profound, in my case, psychodynamic reparative therapy. reparative therapy helped save my life. my depression, clinically depressed twice, went down. my anxiety went down. my self-esteem went up. my confidence in my own gender identity went up. and was more secured in me over a period of years with this therapy. i was sexually abused as a child and emotionally abused. so if i was still a minor and not allowed to -- to undergo treatment for something that, for me was -- was -- did not

represent who i was, then it would be an egregious abuse in my opinion. that's what happened to me. my success. >> i'm sorry to hear about your abuse. but your gay and wanted to be straight? >> no, i was never gay identified. like there are many thousands of people all over the world, probably multiple thousands, who believe that for them there is a cause and effect nature of homosexuality. and usually it is in the -- happens because of gender -- a severe gender identity inferiority, lack of emotional -- unmet needs from the time one is a child from usually the same sex parent, and there is a lot of inner wounds that we discover in therapy. when the short version is when the wounds get healed, the homosexual feelings, we don't force them away, they naturally spontaneously dissipate. >> david, i just have to press you on that because let me just first quote the governor of california because you mentioned the word quackery and a lot of people are shaking their heads thinking there is no way this

could possibly work. the practices have no basis in science or medicine and they will now be relegated to the dust bin of quackery, your governor, david, is calling what you do quackery. can you just react to that and tell me how this new law will affect what you do? >> yes. let me tell you what kind of governor we have now. so, for instance, if a child is -- let me tell you first, any good competent therapist knows that homosexual feelings can result when one -- i'm talking about boys now, when one is raped or sexually molested. later in life, those feelings come up. what our governor decided now he knows best that the kind of profound affective therapy is quackery, that handles this kind of situation. >> david, how about the american psychiatric -- forgive me, i'll add on to the governor, the american psychiatric association says the potential risk of reparative therapy is great including depression, anxiety,

self-destructive behavior, reparative therapy, this is the truth wins out, reparative therapy is junk science winning out by religious beliefs. >> including the apa, you didn't quote them correctly, you didn't quote the conclusions of their findings, which says there is no proof that soce causes harm. >> let me bring in -- >> i appreciate you telling me i'm misquoting something, but i am quoting something correctly and elizabeth cohen, let me bring you in. this is our senior medical correspondent, talking about this before. can you respond to that? >> the american psychological association i have their report right here and they say there is insufficient evidence to support the use of psychological interventions to change sexual orientation. >> exactly. >> they say -- >> exactly. >> sir, i want to ask you a question, you said something that was intriguing, you said if a boy is abused by a man, therapy will help him get out of any homosexual feelings that he

has. well, if a girl is raped by a man, do we give her therapy to get rid of heterosexual feelings? >> certainly not. i'm not -- i'm not going to answer a question like that. they're irresponsible. we do competent therapy. therapy that truly works and for the governor to sign into law that continues the potential unconsciously unintentionally but continues the sexual abuse and the heartache of these children who walk in my office who are crying, depressed, lonely, gender identity confused and sexually confused, for them to have a bill that says, no, we can't even talk about these issues, we can't do anything to help these children resolve their homosexual feeling and maximize their heterosexual potential, that's the height of political and therapeutic irresponsibility. >> sir, maybe they're upset about it because their parents have rejected them. maybe they're upset about -- >> that's not what they're telling me. >> the parents are bringing in to see you, and it is well known what you do. maybe they're upset because their parents are giving them a

hard time about being gay. there are plenty of gay kids out there that are perfectly happy. >> let me ask you a question, how do we know that for sure? you know that one way for sure, you ask the client. the client rules. >> and in this case -- in this case, let's stick with the law. >> wait a minute. wait a minute. we don't let parents -- >> sir. no, no, no, no. sir, with all due respect, this is my show. you're a guest on my show. my question to you finally is simply that this is regarding minors, this isn't adults, adults can still continue to come to you and seek out the reparative therapy. my final question, i hear you opposed to this law, are you going to challenge it? >> yes, we are. but you just evaded the question here. >> you don't ask us questions. with all due respect -- >> are you going to let me talk? >> will you answer my question? >> yes, i would be happy to if you let me answer the questions you already asked. the question is do we force clients into this therapy based on what their parents say?

absolutely not. we prevent parents from doing that. we recommend they don't get therapy for that. to your second question, what was it again? >> my question is, will you be challenging the law? >> yes, we're announcing today and you are maybe to your benefit the first television station to note that the national association for research and therapy of homosexuality is filing a major lawsuit. we have also individual therapists and individual minor clients who are now plaintiffs signed up for the lawsuit and it will be filed with liberty counsel this week. >> there we go. david pickup, we'll follow up with you and elizabeth cohen, i appreciate it. appreciate it. obviously -- >> thank you very much, i appreciate it. >> thank you. well, unemployment is still high. middle class is shrinking, so which presidential candidate will be better at turning everything around? cnn asks 17 different economists and the majority of them chose one man. find out who. plus, some great news that has the dow in very good spirits today. embarrassed about my skin.ing

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the economy is one of the biggest issues for voters this year. so, cnn money asked 17 experts and the question they posed was this. who would be better for the economy, mitt romney, would it be barack obama. let's bring in alison kosik. she has the answers. s she's standing by for me at the new york stock exchange. they said who? >> they reluctantly said, brooke, romney. romney would be better for the economy. here's what's sad about this survey that cnn money did, these economists weren't excited about either one of them when asked who would be better for the economy. they asked 17 economists. nine picked romney three picked obama. the math doesn't add up because five couldn't commit to anybody because they said it didn't matter. they couldn't figure out who would fix the economy on their own. they just weren't enthusiastic about one candidate or the other. >> but, you and weir jui were t

last week, alison, we learned president obama is a job creator. why isn't that helping him with the economists? >> that's a good question. and the answer is because hiring still isn't strong enough. those who support romney say, you know, there is too much regulatory uncertainty, businesses aren't sure what is going to happen with the fiscal cliff coming up. they're not doing anything. they're sitting on their hands, not hiring. another reason that these economists didn't go with obama is political gridlock. some say that romney is likely to have more success getting legislation through congress. but, those who support obama say the president is more likely to reduce the deficit, to cut entitlement spending like social security, but once again, just not a lot of excitement for either person. which is kind of sad. >> let's talk about excitement on the dow. let's show the stocks because they have been rallying since this morning, what is it -- up 121 points now. got a pretty important report on the manufacturing sector. what do we need to know?

>> so what we got was the granddaddy of manufacturing reports and what it showed is that manufacturing is back in expansion territory, the sector is growing again. that could help boost the economy. this is notable because it comes after three months of contraction in manufacturing. also, you look at china, manufacturing in china, in europe, it is going backwards it contracting. sobucking the trend. a good surprise for the u.s. manufacturing is what helped get us out of the recession in 2009. we saw activity picked up, hiring picked up. we saw the trend continuing. we want to see that continue to help the economy move forward. with a lot more momentum. >> we like it. we like the direction. alison kosik, thank you very much. there are a lot of protests over mahmoud ahmadinejad in the united states this last week for the u.n. general assembly. a cameraman for the president of iran is now saying he doesn't want to go back home to iran, he wants to stay here. hear what he just did to make that happen. and the candidate's speech is in pieces all over the district.

the writer's desktop and the coordinator's phone are working on a joke with local color. the secure cloud just received a revised intro from the strategist's tablet. and while i make my way into the venue, the candidate will be rehearsing off of his phone. [ candidate ] and thanks to every young face i see out there. [ woman ] his phone is one of his biggest supporters. [ female announcer ] with cisco at the center... working together has never worked so well. i have a cold... i took dayquil, but i still have a runny nose.

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entire neighborhoods are being leveled by bulldozers and the syrian city of hammia, the targets of syrian security forces. thousands of people have fled their homes to avoid the heavy shelling, but now have no homes to return to. the aftermath is a grim, grim scene. so far, 120 buildings destroyed, opposition groups say 127 people have been killed in syria today. that number includes 12 children. and a security forces continue to shell syrian neighborhoods, civilian neighborhoods in syria, i should say, syria's foreign minister blasts international calls for the country's president to step down in a fiery speech at the united nations just a short time ago. he accused the united states and its allies of supporting terrorism in syria. cnn's senior united nations correspondent richard roth joins me in new york. richard, we know topic of syria

very much so dominated in the conversation, this past week at the u.n. ga. we're hearing from the syrian government directly. what did he say? >> it was a fiery speech in words, maybe not how it was delivered. second year in a row for the syrian foreign minister to represent his country caught in a maelstrom of violence back home. the syrian foreign minister blasted the united states among other countries for supporting what he calls terrorists for toppling his regime. >> translator: we also wonder to what extent the statements made by qatar, saudi arabia, turkey, the united states, france and others to what extent do these statements, which clearly incite and support terrorism in syria with money, weapons and foreign fighters, to what extent are these in line with the international responsibilities of these countries in combatting terrorism.

>> syria's foreign minister said the country should talk at the negotiating table with anybody who opposes it and can be settled at the ballot box. he again said many countries are really creating the trouble inside syrian territory. the minister met earlier in the morning with secretary-general ban ki-moon, who in a statement, the u.n. put out, says the secretary-general told the minister about the problems with continued killings, massive destruction, human rights abuses, secretary-general noted the violence could prepare -- should be reduced to prepare for a political process there. this type of strong words, brooke, you don't often hear in the typical statement the u.n. puts out after the secretary-general meets with one of the hundreds of world leaders at this general assembly session. >> okay, so this is syria. what about iran? what about this cameraman for mahmoud ahmadinejad, the iranian president, his final time, you know, in new york, as president, and so this cameraman is applying for asylum in the u.s.,

correct? >> that's right. there is always interesting sidelines and side lights to the big general assembly week and we have one left behind so to speak, an iranian cameraman, part of the 100 plus delegation of milwaukee mauahmoud ahmadine requested asylum in the united states. he did not go back to tehran with the dell daegation thursda evening. he's allowed to stay here while the case is deliberated on. the cameraman's name, hasan, has a lawyer in new york who is now representing him and doing some occasional briefings for the media. but we have not spoken to the cameraman who has requested asylum here in the united states. brooke? >> doesn't want to go home to iran apparently. we'll follow up with you, richard roth, thank you very much for us at the united nations. now to this, she ran for governor of california, the ceo of hp,-packardhewlett-packard.

meg whitman has some advice for the massachusetts governor as he heads into wednesday's hugely crucial presidential debate. my doctor told me calcium

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former leader meg whitman spent millions of her own money trying to become the governor of california. that didn't work. she lost to jerry brown two years ago and now leads hewlett-packard. she's a successful, wealthy businesswoman who entered politics and she faced some of the very same criticisms being hurled at gop presidential candidate mitt romney. here is what meg whitman said when our poppy harlow asked her if she had any advice for romney. >> i'm out of the advice business in terms of politics. listen, i just say, you know, talk about the economy, talk about your vision for the future, of how you want to have -- put in place the policies that are going to have this economy come roaring back, so, you know, unemployment will drop, businesses will hire, and

everyone will feel more secure about the future. these campaigns are -- they have their ups and downs. they're tremendously challenging. and we always knew this was going to be a tough race against an incumbent president. so, you know, i think we have four more weeks to go in the campaign. there is a lot of ground to cover. we'll see what happens. >> do you think your friend mitt romney is going to win? >> i think he's going to win because in the end i think this will turn on the economy. but lots of road ahead. and, you know, whatever happens, you know, we got to have a congress that can work together, that can plot a great path for america and, you know, encourage entrepreneurship and encourage manufacturing back in the united states. >> poppy also went on and asked meg whitman what she thought of mitt romney's comments caught on video recently, the so-called 47% of americans, ones he said are dependent on government and won't be voting for him.

here was her response to that. >> running for office is very tough. you know, you're on all e time, sometimes you're not as articulated as what you should be. what i know about mitt romney is he deeply understands the economy. he knows how to put in place policies that will get america back to work and i have a lot of confidence in his ability to do that. >> meg whitman told poppy she's an optimist and once the election is over, political leaders in washington will do the right thing for the country. and we roll on, hour two, thanks for being with me. i'm brooke baldwin. let's begin this hour with debate questions for president obama. courtesy of, where is he? there he is, this guy, david fromme, speechwriter to george w. bush. he is a cnn contributor. david fromme, wonderful to have you on. let me let all our folks know on our website, cnn.com/opinion,

you posed these foreign policy questions to barack obama. number one, can you tell us specifically what the afghan troop surge accomplished? and this, can you guarantee that iran will not have acquired a nuclear weapon by the time you finish a second term in office? david frum, foreign policy seems to be one of the president's strengths, at least that is what some of these polls indicate. of the two questions we just showed, some of the questions you posed here in this ten questions for obama to answer piece, which is likely to be toughest for the president to answer and why? >> all right, well, i put foreign policy questions at the top, that's so core to a president's responsibilities, domestic, occupy the second half of the list. the tougher question would be the afghanistan question. this is the president's probably single largest scale foreign policy decision, the bin laden raid, a tough call and he's made many other decisions both public and secret. but he -- he campaigns strongly

in 2008 on winding down the iraq war and escalating up the afghanistan war. he sent 30,000 -- 33,000 american troops there and the question is at the end of his term, with the 33,000 troops leaving, what is there to show for it. a lot of people think afghanistan looks today exactly like it did in 2008, what did those 33,000 people with all their sacrifices and heroism, what did they specifically accomplish? >> especially now with the, you know, increase in the insider taxes, the green on blue attacks, that will, i'm sure, be asked of him. i want to follow up with you moving away from foreign policy and specifically two more questions you ask for president obama on the economy. republican speechwriter david frum posing the questions again on our website. so number one, you asked why shouldn't americans blame you for the meager record since the economic recovery began more than three years ago. number two, can you give specific examples of any real life improvements to our infrastructure that was achieved

by your economic stimulus, be as specific as possible. david, could you hazard just -- this is just the guessing game now, could you hazard a guess as to how the president will answer that question on the improvements to the infrastructure? >> on the second of the two questions, i should say with the first, i did -- one of the reasons i emphasized the slowness of the recovery to make clear nobody blames the president for the steepness of the decline. the economy hit bottom in the summer of 2009, that was a long time ago. he is responsible for what has happened since the summer of 2009 and that's been the weakest recovery since world war ii. on the infrastructure -- >> yeah. >> -- the president would probably cite his investments, so-called, in alternative energy. but what americans i think thought that those may pay off, they probably won't pay off, because since then the price of natural gas has come down so much that wind power looks completely ill and southeasterly power lo solar power look like a

technology for 20, 30, 40 years from now, not tomorrow. what about the bridges? amtrak released a plan to accelerate traffic on the northeast corridor after 2040. that's the opposite of shovel ready. that's, like, that's like, you know, futureristic jetsons postmodern shovel ready. >> a lot of people with like to have quicker amtrak travel before then, but let's just flip the script. we have to be fair, talk about mitt romney. you're a republican, full disclosure. >> that's next week's column. >> give me -- let's foreshadow to that column, david frum. if you could pose one really tough question to mitt romney what would that question be? >> my toughest question to mitt romney, what does an average family, what does that family get from your economic program? >> and what would be a solid answer in your opinion? >> a solid answer would be to hear how mitt romney's plans would translate into a strong economic recovery because the bad news is in specific

programmatic terms he unfortunately does not have that much to offer those people. the tax cuts will not be much benefit for them. what is given with lower rates will be taken away with loss of deductions. and, of course, there will be pressure on some of the health care promises made under the president obama's plan. that's the toughest question. that's the question that will decide the election and one reason that probably mitt romney has some trouble in the polls right now. >> speaking of the polls, and there are a lot of polls, you know this, and especially a lot of republicans saying, you know, hey, these polls that show the president leading in these multiple swing states, no, they say they're bogus, they skew democratic, i heard paul ryan complaining about the media yesterday, we were reminded of this guy running for re-election in 1992. remember this? >> if you haven't detected i'm a little sore at the national media. let me tell you something -- i better be careful. i better not say that. i got -- they're mad at me anyway. i love my favorite bumper sticker, annoy the media, re-elect bush.

>> oh, the media, david frum, complaining about the media, did not help bush one. he lost his bid for re-election. can media bashing help romney, help ryan? do you think it is going to work? >> it can help them in the sense that it gets the republican base dislikes the major national media more than i think it likes its actual candidate. so in that sense it can generate enthusiasm. on the -- >> can we say that again. you think they dislike the national media more than they like their actual candidates? did i hear you correctly? >> you did. one of romney's perpetual clunk challenges, very detrimental to him, he's been forced again and again to act as if he's still running for the nomination, including what i think was the very unwise decision to choose paul ryan as his running mate, thus tie himself to the very bold if that's the word you want, ryan plan. i would have gone for something more cautious myself.

but on the polls, the republicans have this much of a case. when you're a pollster, you have to make a decision, what will the electorate look like? by definition, you don't know the answer to that question. you end up extrapolating from the last election or two or three. but the past is not usually a good guide to these kinds of things. and elections and voting patterns are very -- sudden changes. in 2004 and 2008 we had enormous voter turnout, about 60%, more than 120 million people. well, 2012, will it look like that or will it look like previous elections where we had voter turnout under 55%. and depending on what assumption you make you get very different results. what is a pollster to do, they end up projecting forward what happened last time. >> we shall see as far as turnout goes. but really this wednesday, these next couple of debates, the biggest audience these guys are going to get until november 6th, we'll be talking about it, watching, david frum, thank you. maybe we'll chat next week. i would love to hear the remaining nine questions you have for mitt romney.

read david frum's piece, go to cnn.com/opinion. and you can follow the page on twitter. it is @cnnopinion. david, thank you. and don't forget, wednesday night, the president versus his challenger face to face, huge night, special coverage here on cnn and cnn.com at 7:00 eastern. we'll be watching, we'll be tweeting and we hope you'll join us. cnn has a new poll releasing at the top of the hour, speaking of all these polls. there is going to be some news in that one. that happens at 4:00 eastern with my friend wolf blitzer. and we should also tell you this, mitt romney has gotten an upward tick in our cnn poll of polls. you see the numbers. what we do, again, the poll of polls, take a batch of polls, average them together, our latest average has the president getting 49% support from likely voters. you see romney at 46%, that's one point up for romney. he was at 45% before today. just into us here, totally

switching gears, the search for jimmy hoffa, police in michigan say we'll find out tomorrow whether soil taken outside of a home has any evidence of human remains. a tipster claims to have seen a body being buried under a shed at the roseville home on the day after jimmy hoffa disappeared. remember this was way back, 1975. so just this past friday you see the crews, they were out there digging under the shed. they then sent soil samples out for testing. this is -- this is the latest tip in the 37-year search for the teamster boss. and a lot more news unfolding here on this monday. watch this. there is a pretty good chance the next president will make at least one supreme court pick. and our sources are telling us who has the best shot. i'm brooke baldwin. the news is now. california, first state to ban the so-called cure for being gay. a treatment the governor calls pure quackery.

plus, speaking of california governors, this one reveals how maria shriver found out about the affair that ended their marriage. and hugo chavez is younger, hipper and can ball and rap with the best of them. at least that's what his re-election campaign wants voters to think. ♪ (train horn) vo: wherever our trains go,

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...and we inspected his brakes for free. -free is good. -free is very good. [ male announcer ] now get 50% off brake pads and shoes at meineke. how is this for some great new kwhz s when it comes to the manufacturing sector. you see the dow up 91 points. we have been 48 minutes until the end of the trading day. but you have this survey of purchasing managers. it shows the first expansion in u.s. manufacturing in, count them with me, four months. four months. great news. the average american could be looking at a $3500 tax hike if congress fails to avert the so-called fiscal cliff. this is according to the tax policy center. in january, $7 trillion worth of tax increase and spending cuts will begin to go into effect. alison kosik is at the new york stock exchange right now. alison, we have talked about the fiscal cliff, remind us, you

know, how it would affect our wallets come the first of the year. >> this is easy. it would have a huge impact on our wallets. did you know 88% of americans will pay more in taxes if we go over the so-called fiscal cliff. this comes from the tax policy center. it shows the issue here is that a record number of tax increases will kick in beginning in january. they're everything from those bush era tax cuts those would expire. the payroll tax holiday that would go away. health reform taxes, that would kick in. to boot, the congressional budget office said, you know what, it could drive the economy in a recession because it would mean less money in our wallets, less money to spend, and put into the economy. >> so let's just crunch the numbers. let's say someone makes $50,000 a year, how much more would someone have to pay? >> well, for the average american it means thousands more dollars that americans would are to pay in taxes. so overall, of course, it varies based on how much you make. look at the range here.

for the top 1% of people, these are people who make more than half a million dollars, the fiscal cliff means their taxes will go up by $120,000. if you're in the middle income range, it means you pay an extra $2,000. if you come in at the lower income range, an extra $400 in taxes. >> the presumption in talking to members of congress, you know, people are saying, look, no one is going to be voting on this before november 6th, before election day. what is the likelihood that they will take this out, they will agree on something before the end of the year? >> well, it is unlikely they'll take it up before the election. what most analysts are saying is that they don't think congress is going to let all of these increases take effect at once. but this is just a guess. the analysts, they're putting a lot of faith in congress. that's taking a leap right there because as i said, the problem here is that congress is focused on the election, nothing is expected to get done until after november 6th, hopefully. it is going to come down to the wire. and if there is anything that congress does well, it is procrastination. we may be watching the clock on

this one. brooke? >> we will. we will. alison kosik, thank you very much. and now to this, the moment arnold schwarzenegger had to sit down, look his wife in the eyes, and tell her he had an affair and fathered a child. that is just one of the affairs he had to confess to. he has a new memoir out today. that's next. the wheels of progress haven't been very active lately. but because of business people like you, things are beginning to get rolling. and regions is here to help.

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chuck pagano is the head coach of the indianapolis colts. he has diagnosed with leukemia. pagano apparently felt tired over the past couple of weeks, noticed increased bruising on his body, and according to the national cancer institute, this particular form of leukemia is very aggressive and fast moving. but highly treatable. and this is a man who has done everything from animation to saturday night live to the hit movie ted. now seth mcfarland can add oscar host to his resume. the writer, actor, director will be hosting the 85th annual academy awards, the family guy creator's first time hosting the oscars, which airs sunday, february 24th. arnold schwarzenegger, wow, revealing some incredibly personal details during this interview with "60 minutes". the actor turned politician

admits a habit of keeping secrets including multiple affairs he kept from his wife maria shriver. cnn's zoraida sambolin has more from the tell-all autobiography which hits book shelves today. >> i think it was the stupidest thing i've done in the whole relationship. >> reporter: a secret he kept from his wife maria shriver and the public for years. >> it was terrible. i inflicted tremendous pain on maria and unbelievable pain on the kids. >> reporter: the most painful chapter from arnold schwarzenegger's new memoir "total recall," the moment he admitted to shriver he had fathered a child behind her back with the family's housekeeper, mildred baena. >> she then said, hey, i think that joseph is your kid. and am i off her on this or not? and i said, yeah, you're absolutely correct.

>> shriver confronted her husband about the affair at a counseling session the day after he left office in 2011. schwarzenegger admits she raised suspicions before, but he hadn't been truthful. so you lied to her. >> you can say that. >> reporter: baena remained the couple's housekeeper, working for the woman she had betrayed. >> even after you realized it, was that -- was that strange? >> very difficult, strange, whatever you want to call it, but that's the best way i could handle it. >> reporter: schwarzenegger also writes of a, quote, hot fair with actress bridget nielsen, his co-star in the film "red son sonya." he was already living with shriver at the time. >> she knew? >> yeah. >> so it is a recurring issue? with you? >> i'm not perfect.

>> reporter: affairs weren't the only secrets. schwarzenegger also admits he tried to hide open heart surgery from shriver, and says he didn't tell her about his run for governor until days before he announced it. >> she started shaking, and she had tears in her eyes. i realized i was stepping into something that was much deeper than just mere running and her being a supportive wife. >> reporter: she ultimately gave up her journalism career to campaign with her husband. now years later, his time in office over, schwarzenegger says he'll always live with the regret of what he did to his family. >> that is something that i will always look back and say, how could you have done that? >> zoraida sambolin, thank you. so who has more riding on this week's presidential debate? we'll take a look at how a winner will be decided after this week's showdown. plus, a lot of folks complaining about the airport pat-downs and scanners. well, the u.s. supreme court just decide wld it will take up that complaint or not. [ woman ] it's 32 minutes to go time,

and the candidate's speech is in pieces all over the district. the writer's desktop and the coordinator's phone are working on a joke with local color. the secure cloud just received a revised intro from the strategist's tablet. and while i make my way into the venue, the candidate will be rehearsing off of his phone. [ candidate ] and thanks to every young face i see out there. [ woman ] his phone is one of his biggest supporters. [ female announcer ] with cisco at the center... working together has never worked so well. romney: "it's time to stand up with to the cheaters"ter... vo: tough on china? not mitt romney. when a flood of chinese tires threatened a thousand american jobs... it was president obama who stood up to china and protected american workers. mitt romney attacked obama's decision... said standing up to china was "bad for the nation and our workers." how can mitt romney take on the cheaters...

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the supreme court is back in session today and will consider some of the most controversial issues of our time, including affirmative action, same sex marriage, abortion rights. one item it will not be considering, those thorough body pat-downs, use of the full body scanners at u.s. airports. a michigan blogger complained that the tsa screening techniques violate the fourth amendment, which protects us from illegal searches. but the supreme court gave the bloggers complaint a pass. it is the very first presidential debate here of this campaign and is turning into one of the most hyped political events of this entire year. president obama and mitt romney, one on one, wednesday night, denver, colorado. let me bring in chief political analyst gloria borger with a preview and, gloria, hit this home for me. we talked about how crucial this

is, really, for both of these men. we say how crucial, really how crucial is it? >> well, i don't think the stakes can get any higher. this isn't as if you have 20 primary debates like you did for the republicans during the primary season. you got a few times for both mitt romney and president obama to show their stuff, this first debate is huge. largely because the race is tight, in the battleground states, the president seems to be really gaining an advantage. and generally, you know, you can't decide as a voter to fire somebody until you're sure that the replacement can do a good job. this is that moment when you're going to have a huge audience and if you're mitt romney, you have to explain to american voters why you can be commander in chief, and why you would be the replacement for president obama. >> isn't so much of this, though, leading up to wednesday night, the lowering of the

expectations game, but to quote candy crowley, whenno s she was talking about chris christie, apparently chris christie didn't get the memo, but we showed this poll that shows that americans very much so expect the president to win this debate with mitt romney. might that be a good thing for mitt romney goinging into this with the lower numbers? >> sure. lower -- i never talked to as many romney advisers who compliment president obama as much as they have done in the last week. president obama is a great debater. the way i recall it, brooke, in the last presidential campaign, debates were not president obama's strengths. in fact, he's a much better speechmaker than he is a debater. and don't forget, he hasn't debated an awful lot lately. when the president of the united states and you're in the oval office, people tend not to debate with you an awful lot. you live in the presidential bubble. he hasn't been on stage with other people challenging him. so in a way, he sort of has got to get used to this routine over

and over again, where as mitt romney has been on a debate stage an awful lot of times. >> if i recall, you were in a lot of those debates, he's tough, he's no wallflower that mitt romney. what is his biggest challenge, though? going into wednesday? >> the biggest challenge, i think mitt romney has got to do a couple of things. they're at odds with each other. first thing goehe's got to do i take on president obama directly when it comes to policy. what he has to tell the voters is i've got a better plan for an economic recovery than the president. he has to challenge him directly. but, brooke, he has to do it in a way, in which american public doesn't decide, i don't like this guy very much, because they like president obama. so he has to challenge him without getting really nasty about it. and then he has to let the american people know that he understands their problems. because by a 3-1 margin in this country, voters believe the

president better understands their anxieties and their economic fears than mitt romney. so he needs to talk to the public. >> in addition to that, 30 seconds, i want to ask you, what constitutes the win? is it one line that we're going to loop over and over the next day, a gaffe on behalf of the other candidate. what are we watching for? >> let me turn the question around, a gaffe say loss. if you make a big mistake, it is a problem for you. when mitt romney finds himself in sort of a candid moment where he can't predict what the challenge is going to be, he has awkward responses. that's a big problem for him. a victory for mitt romney would be just going toe to toe with the president, looking presidential, and a victory for president obama would be in making mitt romney look inconsequential, not up to the job. and someone whose math doesn't

add up on the fiscal issues. so i think it is a big challenge for both. >> i can't wait to watch. i can't wait to see you and the rest of the a-team and the post game as well. gloria borger, thank you. another reminder, again, wednesday night, the president versus his challenger face to face, especially coverage beginning at 7:00 eastern here on cnn. and on cnn.com. the cure, quote/unquote, for being gay. you're about to hear from the man who said he went through the therapy and the governor of his state who says it is ridiculous. that's next. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] its lightweight construction makes it nimble...

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let me quote someone here, i

was a monster, the words of the only surviving d.c. area sniper, speaking behind bars. lee boyd malvo spoke with the washington post about what he's learned in the ten years since he and john allen muhammad went on the horrendous, notorious killing spree in washington, d.c. and its suburbs. that, again, ten years ago this month. the two men killed ten people, injured three more, including a 13-year-old. and created widespread fear that if you walked out your door, that day, you could die. >> very scared. everybody is scared. we're scared to go to the store. we're scared to pump gas. >> muhammad was executed three years ago. malvo, a teenager at the time, now 27, will spend the remainder of his life in prison. speaking from the super max facility in virginia, he apologized. >> am sorry. i am sorry. and it sounds -- there is no way

to express, there is no way to express that. i mean, what am i going to tell them? i'm sorry i murdered your only child. i'm sorry i killed your husband. i'm sorry i murdered your wife. what do i tell the child who was waiting for his father to come home and dad never showed up? i mean, there's nothing -- there's -- i mean, i was a monster. if you look up the definition, i mean, that's what a monster is. i was a ghoul. i was a thief. i stole people's lives. i did someone else's bidding just because they said so. i mean, that is the definition of a monster. >> he did steal people's lives and is away for his lifetime now as a result of it. he told the post, one of the most vivid memories he has of

that time is when he looked into the eyes of one man, this man, ted franklin, the husband of the woman that malvo killed. >> it is the worst sort of pain i have ever seen in my life. his eyes. it is the worst -- words do not show the depth in which to fully convey that emotion. and what i felt when i saw him. you feel like the worst piece of scum on the planet. >> the details of that interview out today in the washington post. and so that writer will be speaking with wolf blitzer coming up next hour in "the situation room," talking about what it was like interviewing this man across the plexiglass this past month. moving along to something that critics call quote/unquote, the cure that only makes you worse. this is called reparative therapy, the official name for treatment that aims to turn

someone who is gay or has homosexual feelings straight. now it has been banned in california as of just this weekend. four teena for teenagers and children, governor jerry brown signed this ban into law this past saturday. he tweeted as he was doing so, this bill bans nonspecific, quote, therapies that have driven young people to depression and suicides. we'll keep this conversation going. we have criminal defense attorney joey jackson on the case with me today. good to see you sir. what a story. >> boy. >> yeah, i had a reparative therapist on last hour and it got contentious. there are people on both sides of this. let me begin with the first question of this new law, banning minors from par take in this kind of therapy. if a therapist ignores that law, would he or she go to jail? >> it is not so much a criminal, they're not looking to criminalize therapists, but, of course, if you don't obey the law, that's what it could lead to, but it is more about discipline, it is about your license, this is something we're

not going to allow or consider to be appropriate, we believe it to be junk science, as a result of that you can be disciplined. and you have to make a living, so if you do it, no license, can't perform any further. >> this is still a journey he's undergoing and he said it absolutely worked for him. take a listen. >> my anxiety went down. my self-esteem went up. my confidence in my own gender identity went up. and was more secured in me over a period of years with this therapy. i was sexually abused as a child and emotionally abused. >> let's say, you know, for folks who agree with david pickup, and there are parents out there who agree with him and say, look, my child has perhaps some tendencies, feelings, i want him or her to get help. can they make that happen? >> no. look, ultimately the law is the law and not surprising, brooke, you have people on both sides as you mentioned and some people believe that it is appropriate,

okay? however the american psychological association has come out and said, it is junk science, it can lead to depression, suicide, it is just not something we should be undertaking. not surprising, brooke, there is a lawsuit, what does the lawsuit do? it says, look, not so fast, let's impose an injunction upon the law that says let's halt it, stop it, stay it and have a debate on this issue. and what the debate should say is you're violating my rights. how? these are parents who have the right to decide how their kids are growing up. therefore, this law takes that right away from them and says the state will now determine what is appropriate and what is not appropriate. so not surprisingly, there are groups out there and there is a lawsuit in the mix which may very well stay this particular -- >> not just one. david pickup who spoke with me from narth said he too -- they too are filing a suit, so two suits. two suits into this ban. >> we talk about litigation all the time, brooke. that's how it works. it is a never-ending thing.

it is pretty tough because ultimately the state has a right to ultimately say, listen, we know what's right, we know what's wrong, but families have a right to decide what is in the best interests of their children, that's why in law when we have the discussions it never clear. so frustrating. >> joey jackson, thank you. >> pleasure and privilege. >> now this, a sobering reminder, america still at war, more than 2,000 americans have now been killed in afghanistan. and it is one thing to tell you about what servicemen and women are going through on the battlefield, but it is quite another entirely for you to experience it. we're taking you inside a fierce gun battle next.

when we got married. i had three kids. and she became the full time mother of three. it was soccer, and ballet, and cheerleading, and baseball. those years were crazy. so, as we go into this next phase, you know, a big part of it for us is that there isn't anything on the schedule. you see us, at the start of the day. on the company phone list that's a few names longer. you see us bank on busier highways. on once empty fields. everyday you see all the ways all of us at us bank are helping grow our economy. lending more so companies and communities can expand, grow stronger and get back to work. everyday you see all of us serving you, around the country, around the corner.

us bank. in afghanistan, the suicide attacker on a motorcycle packed with explosives killed 14 people in eastern afghanistan just this morning. among the dead, three nato forces. in total, 57 people were wounded. now to a video that has surfaced on the internet. a u.s. soldier wearing a helmet

cam last april in kunar province comes under fire. our view here is virtual. he's facing the real thing. this is heart pounding stuff. take a look. >> fire! >> hey! i'm moving down! [ gunfire ]

[ bleep ] i'm hit! i'm hit! i'm hit! i'm hit! [ bleep ] help me! i'm hit!

i'm hit! i'm hit! i'm hit! i'm hit! i'm hit! i'm hit! i'm hit! >> you hear the soldier, it turns out the soldier here suffered minor injuries and has since returned to duty. also, no other coalition member were hurt in that particular fire fight. hugo chavez has apparently a

softer side. ♪ playing a folk song, to rocking with the band, chavez showing that softer side. but you have not seen anything yet. ears are weird. i don't know what shape that is .. but it's not round. so why would headphones be round? they should be shaped like this..

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i'm dr. sanjay gupta. meet jennifer polka, founder of code for america. it is kind of a peace corps for geeks. >> most people have seen that geeks have changed the world so much in the past ten or 20 years that they haven't changed government yet. we get people to take a year off. it is geeks, it is also designers, it is also product managers, but people from the technical industries, and we get them to work with people in city hall to solve problems in cities for a year. >> she wants to fix local

government, one smartphone app at a time. sunday on "the next list."

we are just a couple of minutes away from the top of the hour with wolf blitzer and "the situation room." wolf has a preview. i know you have polls at the top of the hournew polls you're releasing and that interview with "the washington post" writer on the malvo situation. >> brian todd has been on it. we remember the whole d.c. sniper story. i remember filling my car with gas and bending down, thinking a sniper could show up.

hard to believe it's been ten years already. but that's the way time goes by. we have a brand-new cnn/orc poll being released at the top of the hour. john king is in denver getting ready for the debate, as you probably know by now. we're going to see, are either two candidates moving up, moving down, what's going on? a lot of our viewers don't know yet, they will know in a few minutes what's the latest in this national poll of likely voters all across the country. in our 6:00 p.m. eastern hour, we have a major national security debate between two representatives from the campaigns, general wesley clark representing barack obama. rich williamson representing mitt romney, a major debate on national security, what's going on right now. you probably saw that article that mitt romney wrote in the op ed page of "the wall street journal" today blasting the president's record on national security and foreign policy. we'll go in-depth on that. a lot more coming up as we always have right here in "the situation room." >> wolf blitzer, see you then,

top of the hour. thank you, sir. before i let you go, from fierce socialist leader to friendly rapper? venezuela's hugo chavez up for reelection and his campaign doing everything in its power to make him more appealing to the younger voters. as cnn's rafael romo found out, that includes putting him on a motorcycle and on a basketball court. take a look. >> reporter: during a recent cabinet meeting, hugo chavez interrupted the proceedings to sing a folk song. ♪ at a campaign event, he got on stage to rock with the band. venezuela's holding its presidential election on october 7th. although the socialist leader enjoys fiercely loyal support throughout the country, the

undecided, especially young people, are 23% of the electorate and could turn it around. his campaign has carefully crafted a new image which shows chavez in campaign posters riding a motorcycle, playing basketball and even as a rap artist. a public appearance with american actor sean penn over the summer didn't hurt either. it's a sharp contrast with the image of a sick man who was diagnosed with cancer last year and underwent two surgeries. he recently objected to a reporter's question about his health. >> translator: here i am and every day, i feel in better physical condition. and i firmly believe that that expression about physical limitation that is you used, it's not going to be a factor in this campaign. >> reporter: for the director of a venezuelan polling firm, he says chavez has used his bout with cancer to his advantage. >> he has handled his sickness, his illness, he's handled it, in terms of communication with the

public, in a very cheerfulistic and pervasive way. he's always presence and trying to prove that he's not sick, that he's winning another battle, as he calls it. >> reporter: crafting a youthful image is also important because chavez is 18 years older than his political rival. cap capilas turned 40 over the summer and is campaigning by bus. >> translator: venezuelans are looking for a new way. it's been 14 years of the same government. this government has nothing more to offer. they're only recycling promises. >> reporter: chavez would have been unable to run for reelection because of constitutional limits. but his party pushed for a referendum in 2009 in which voters eliminated term limits. winning another term in office next month would allow chavez to rule venezuela until 2019.

the 20th anniversary of his rise to power. rafael romo, china, atlanta. >> rafael, thank you. for all of you who have moved past vinyl, chucked your cassette tapes. how's this for a "remember when." it was 30 years ago today that the first compact disc was released. who was the artist? was it eddie money, the rolling stones, billy joel or the bangles? testing your music knowledge here on this monday after this break. ♪ ♪ ♪ we're lucky, it's not every day you find a companion

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